Writing Log: Finally!
Oct. 25th, 2009 04:55 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
abracanabra10/24/2009 - Saturday
Deleted from Chapter 18
Old chapter wordcount: 8,383
New chapter wordcount: 5,586
Vicesteed Draft 1 wordcount: 207,877
Vicesteed Draft 2 current wordcount: 165,203
Notes: This is a Valinda chapter. So most of my editing was to make her slightly more sane, and to remove the worst of the wisdom chip parroting information excessively.
Reason for deleting scene: Chilling imagery, yes. Making sense? No.
Which deleted scene is it anyway?
Deleted from Chapter 19
Old chapter wordcount: 2,841
New chapter wordcount: 0
Vicesteed Draft 1 wordcount: 207,877
Vicesteed Draft 2 current wordcount: 162,159
Notes: I deleted the entire chapter. Most of this was her recovering from a murder attempt I decided to remove from the plotline. Part of it was having a phone conversation plotting treason, which really made more sense moved around to the earlier personal conversation. There were parts of this chapter, key bits of information or plot movement, that I had to rework into the rest of the novel, but mostly--poof! Gone.
Reason for deleting scene: Unnecessary plotline. Need to cut word count.
Which deleted scene is it anyway?
10/23/2009 - Friday
* Posted writing log.
* Penthius freewriting about bastard heirs.
* (Finally!) processed Flash Me's personal (with editorial comment) rejection of "Waiting."
* (Finally!) responded to 2 MinnSpeccer's extracurricular crits of Vicesteed chapters with thanks and more chapters. Bad Abra, no biscuit for speed of response.
* (Finally!) responded to another friend's crit of Vicesteed chs. 23-26. So delayed on that one that the biscuits might as well be in another universe.
* (Finally!) printed and filed 4 Critters crits of Vicesteed chapter 29.
* Wrote the paragraph summaries for Vicesteed chs. 31-32, and the "everything you need to know to critique" for chs. 33-34. Those are the last chapters in the book, so this was basically a rough one-page summary of the whole thing. That was hard.
* (Finally!) loaded up the last 2 chapters of Vicesteed to Critters for critique. Now I just have to do 9+ crits to get it critiqued. Ulp.
* Submitted "Periwinkle Eyes" to the Micro Award (for flash fiction first published in 2009). Now I just need to get to a post office to figure postage.
* Updated Spec the Halls guidelines, emailed/posted/x-posted reminder, set up RSS feed, and contacted Ralan, Duotrope, and Critters about it.
Deleted from Chapter 18
Old chapter wordcount: 8,383
New chapter wordcount: 5,586
Vicesteed Draft 1 wordcount: 207,877
Vicesteed Draft 2 current wordcount: 165,203
Notes: This is a Valinda chapter. So most of my editing was to make her slightly more sane, and to remove the worst of the wisdom chip parroting information excessively.
Reason for deleting scene: Chilling imagery, yes. Making sense? No.
Which deleted scene is it anyway?
It moved like its legs were broken and it was dragging itself along on the stumps. Valinda crossed her arms, cold. She didn't want the memory that came with the thought.
Deleted from Chapter 19
Old chapter wordcount: 2,841
New chapter wordcount: 0
Vicesteed Draft 1 wordcount: 207,877
Vicesteed Draft 2 current wordcount: 162,159
Notes: I deleted the entire chapter. Most of this was her recovering from a murder attempt I decided to remove from the plotline. Part of it was having a phone conversation plotting treason, which really made more sense moved around to the earlier personal conversation. There were parts of this chapter, key bits of information or plot movement, that I had to rework into the rest of the novel, but mostly--poof! Gone.
Reason for deleting scene: Unnecessary plotline. Need to cut word count.
Which deleted scene is it anyway?
"What--what time is it?" Rosemary asked.
"One o'clock in the morning. Well past your bedtime, young lady," he answered, smiling as in remembered fondness. He saw her quizzical look. "When you were a little girl, you always wanted to stay up long past your bedtime. I would find you curled up in my study, half-asleep but insisting fiercely that you would not go to bed. I was reminded of it. You always got that very look on your face when you were planning on staying up later than was good for you."
She hoped he hadn't noticed her quick intake of breath. "Well," she told him, smiling brightly. "I'll follow your command for once, papa. I'll go to sleep, even though I feel as if I've just woken up. I'll follow Dr. Portsmouth's orders and get enough rest. Don't send Hannah up to sit beside me, please; I don't sleep well when someone else is nearby, and she's earned her own rest."
She held her breath as he nodded. "Fine, fine," he said, as if he noticed nothing unusual in her request or her manner. "Good night, dear." He bent over and kissed her forehead, something that he had not done since she was a very little girl.
She smiled. Her heart clenched in her chest, and tears threatened once more. But she slid down beneath the sheets and turned her head to one side, closing her eyes as if to sleep. She heard him walk to the door, pause, and then turn down the gaslamp. The door closed quietly. Her eyelids flew open, but she lay still until the sound of his footsteps faded from the corridor. The dimmed gaslamp glowed like a firefly.
Taking as much care as she could, she rose from her bed and ghosted across the room to the vine-draped bough that was her speaking tube.
10/23/2009 - Friday
* Posted writing log.
* Penthius freewriting about bastard heirs.
* (Finally!) processed Flash Me's personal (with editorial comment) rejection of "Waiting."
* (Finally!) responded to 2 MinnSpeccer's extracurricular crits of Vicesteed chapters with thanks and more chapters. Bad Abra, no biscuit for speed of response.
* (Finally!) responded to another friend's crit of Vicesteed chs. 23-26. So delayed on that one that the biscuits might as well be in another universe.
* (Finally!) printed and filed 4 Critters crits of Vicesteed chapter 29.
* Wrote the paragraph summaries for Vicesteed chs. 31-32, and the "everything you need to know to critique" for chs. 33-34. Those are the last chapters in the book, so this was basically a rough one-page summary of the whole thing. That was hard.
* (Finally!) loaded up the last 2 chapters of Vicesteed to Critters for critique. Now I just have to do 9+ crits to get it critiqued. Ulp.
* Submitted "Periwinkle Eyes" to the Micro Award (for flash fiction first published in 2009). Now I just need to get to a post office to figure postage.
* Updated Spec the Halls guidelines, emailed/posted/x-posted reminder, set up RSS feed, and contacted Ralan, Duotrope, and Critters about it.